Ask A Designer™
Ask A Designer: Gillian Atkins’ Best Tips For Updating A Stair Rail
Updated on November 28, 2023
In this Ask A Designer column, Gillian Atkins’ shares advice for updating a stair rail and refreshing the living room.
Question: We’d like to change our living room stair rail. Any ideas for modernizing it? We’ve just moved in and would be grateful for any advice on decorating the space. — G.M., West Kelowna, B.C.
Do you have a design dilemma? Send your questions to [email protected].
Answer: A new railing is a really effective way to help make a dated room feel fresh. If you don’t have the budget to replace your existing Early American–style railing and pickets, try painting them a warm white to help them disappear into your cream walls.
Take inspiration from the photo of the landing above and choose a simple design, with slim wrought-iron pickets and a natural oak railing, either left unstained or stained in a custom color.
You’re off to a good start with your styling; that tall vase is a smart solution for an awkward niche!
Keep scrolling for more of Gillian’s tips for updating a living room!
Swap out the white twigs for something more natural like these affordable bundles of faux branches from Bouclair.
Choose a large decorative bowl for the coffee table.
Add more contrast with throw pillows on the leather chairs.
The print on the mantel is a great scale, but there are too many objects in front of it — opt for a trio of candlesticks to anchor the right side and remove the rest.
I assume the mudroom door is just behind the stair rail? I would flank it with two framed prints and hope it disappears.
Finally, the wall-mounted sculpture in the foyer is too high! As a former gallerist, I can’t let that go — the lower, the better.
Gillian Atkins is a senior designer at Lynda Reeves Design Studio.
House & Home July/August 2022